The prince is verifying me for some reason, and I can’t reject it—everything in me is screaming to let him.
“See?” I say shakily. “I’m here. Oriel’s here. Everything is… well, it’s not okay, per se, but you know. It’s um… less dangerous except for… you?”
Jasper blinks, then looks around the room as if things have snapped into place. The oppressive feel to the air pauses, and I let out a breath of relief. I don’t know what he was doing before, but I definitely felt like it was amping up the fight between my own internal bullshit. Now, they’re not only intertwined, but feelingmuchless combative. His wings flex as he turns back to me, and I note his tail isn’t whipping back and forth like a pissed-off feline anymore.
“That’s good, KK. You’re doing it. Keep it up.”
O’s whisper of encouragement has me swallowing around the dry ache in my throat as I look the dragon in the eyes again. “I wasn’t lying, was I? Those slimy shitballs are cowering, right?” A slow nod is my answer, so I press on. “They’ve probably been punished pretty well for… whatever. I smell a lot of blood, so I guess you dealt with all the passive idiots, too. You can come back now. It’s safe.”
Scales shimmer on his chest, and I’m stuck for a moment staring at the intricate tattoos littered with dragon attributes, and piercings sprinkled over seriously muscular bulk.
Not now, stupid female brain! I don’t have time to ogle him.
Of course, that part of my brain is as much lizard as he is at that moment and doesn’t give a solitaryfuckwhat I say. I shiver a bit in the crow demon’s arms, and a low chuckle rumbles against my back. His lips brush my ear again as he says, “Don’t worry, little shadow. I won’t tell anyone your deep, dark secrets… including that one.”
“Especially that,” I mutter before I grit my teeth and look up at the fading dragon in Jasper’s eyes. “You did your job and protected people. Let him have the reins again before we’re all hauled in front of some really unpleasant committee or slammed in a jail cell.”
That grabs its attention, and within seconds, the slitted eyes and wings are gone. It leaves an angry, shirtless royal looking at me in utter disbelief. He runs a hand over his hair, then looks around the room quickly before he growls, “Son of abitch.”
“Yeah,” Oriel says. “You had amomentagain, and Zav and I couldn’t get the big guy to back off. This is a shitshow, man.”
Before Jasper can answer, I feel a rush of air, and when I look down, Zavida is standing next to us with a worried look on his face. I would ask if he’s okay, but my eyes catch the small bundle of fur in his arms and my heart seizes in my chest.
“Dottie!” My kinkajou uncurls, chittering loudly as she escapes Zav’s clutches to run up Oriel’s arm and look at me carefully like she’s waiting to see if I’m hurt. “Zavida, you’re ahero.”
The Kitsune flushes bright red, and his tails swish up to engulf his frame. “Not really. She found me when O took you to Jas. I’ve just been keeping her from getting hit by debris or magic or whatever.”
“Focus, people,” Jasper snarls, and we all look at him to make sure he’s not slipping back into crazy reptile mode. “We need to get the fuck out of here before Darkstar or any of ourguestsarrive. If we can get upstairs and appear to be doing normal things, we might be able to claim that?—”
He’s cut off by the dorm’s heavy doors flying open like we’re in Helm’s Deep, revealing the conniving fuckwhistle himself, along with his demon flunkies, and the exact emissary from the Court we hoped to avoid in tow.
“What do we have here?” Darkstar says as he smirks gleefully. “Violations of the behavior code involving the royal caliphate—how shocking.”
Born under a bad sign, indeed.
Stand Up
Zavida
The first thing to run through my brain is that this fucking mess was a set-up. But as I study the Major, I realize he doesn’t look bothered or even remotely smug. In fact, he seems… bored. The royal ‘assessor’ walks around the gleeful headmaster without a word, his eyes darting around the room as if he’s grading the aftermath in his head. While Lucian is practically vibrating with dark joy, he is carefully stalking through the bloodied students as if they’re not worth his time.
“It appears we have a cadre of your students learning what happens when you cross royalty,” he finally says as his eyes zero in on our nemesis. “They failed miserably. This does not bode well for the enjoyment of the Games by the Court or even the writhing masses, Darkstar.”
Lucian’s face goes pale as the bulky demon gives him a toothy smile that says he’s pleased with what he will report to his commander. “But… Major. This is not a battle scenario; this display speaks to a lack of discipline and control by?—”
“I would consider your next words very carefully,” the ancient demon says as he smirks. “The laws of Hell outline the responsibilities of bonded caliphates in responding to threats—and they apply to the Prince of Hell as easily as the poorest wretch in the streets. Though… I believe that someone who has never attracted one would not realize how it works.”
Ouch. That was aimed right at his pride; the Major doesn’t pull his punches in public.
“Outrageous!” Lucian hisses as he stomps over to the soldier with his stupid cape flapping. “I am in charge of this school; it was an honor bestowed upon me by the King himself. My judgment is supreme, and you cannot suggest that I do not understand the structure of caliphates in front of my students.”
The Major snorts as he shakes his head in derision. “You’ll find the emissaries of the Court and those in their command are not required to do anything, but follow their orders. Your indignance is registered and discarded as I see fit. This is a disgrace, Headmaster; there’s no reason a crowd this large should capitulate so easily to being conquered, even if they are first-years. You and your staff have been slacking for centuries.”
Beccarus hisses, then immediately hides behind his slimy boss when the Major’s eyes light on him. Lucian ignores the little shit as he looks around the room to memorize who he’s going to take his anger out on. He doesn’t say it, but I know that expression. I’ve seen it on my parents and the others’. Life at court teaches you to read people quickly and to know when to stroke egos and when to retreat to avoid being made an example of.
“This sort of thing never happened untilyourcaliphate arrived, especially that ridiculous human,” Lucian says as he whirls on Jasper.
That was a mistake; the Prince isnotin a place to be diplomatic.
